2 seasons and 2 commendable performances to have reached the playoffs stage. The performance was indeed commendable but Lucknow would have liked to do one better this time around with a place in the finals. However, it wasn’t to be. They were knocked out in the eliminator by Mumbai Indians. It wasn’t just a knockout but it was a killer punch. Lucknow lost to Mumbai by 81 runs. This is an extraordinary margin of defeat even in a league game but in a knockout, it is mindboggling. This is Lucknow Supergiants IPL 2023 review.
The team management must have had a lot of expectations following the auction. Nicholas Pooran, the West Indian dasher was procured for a staggering amount of 16 Crores. This was an exceptional figure and it directly places a lot of pressure on the player. It did pay off in some games but overall, you can say that Pooran repaid the faith placed in him upto 50%.
Standout performer
Marcus Stoinis was their proven performer. He was the only Lucknow batsman to score more than 400 runs. It included 3 fifties. The assault on the RCB bowlers was breathtaking. It was Stoinis who took the initiative to the RCB bowlers and Pooran followed it up. Stoinis also ended up with 3 man of the match award. Not bad for someone who is not a mainstay in the Australian side. If not for Stoinis’s contribution, LSG might have struggled to even reach the playoffs.
Major problem
The over-dependence on 3 of their overseas batsmen. Kyle Mayers, Stoinis and Pooran. The pressure to score runs and score quickly, was enormous on them. In a sense, they mirrored that of RCB who also depended heavily on Faf, Kohli and Maxwell. The Indian batsmen for LSG did not help these batsmen in any way. Krishnappa Gowtham, who was sold for 15 Crores a few years ago for another franchise, did not inspire any confidence with either the bat or with the ball. Deepak Hooda, who made his debut for India not so long ago was another who was found wanting. It could be that after his not-so-impressive returns for India, he has lost some confidence. If not for the IPL rule of not allowing more than 4 overseas cricketers, the chances of Hooda continuing in the team were slim. In 12 games, he managed only 84 runs.
Baffling decision
Was to leave out Quinton de Kock from the playing eleven consistently. He only played 4 games. Here was a batsman who could have provided the much needed support for Stoinis, left out of the team regularly. On what basis did LSG decided to bench Quinton quite often is beyond understanding. He could have easily replaced Mayers at the top or Pooran lower down the order. In addition, he could have kept wickets too.
The ugly
It certainly was the spat between Kohli-Gambhir-Naveen. It was ridiculous to watch and a surprise to see none of them were banned for a certain number of games. Gambhir and Kohli had a similar disagreement some 6 years ago but for that to spill over into the field of play was insane. All the 3 must have been banned for some games to teach a lesson. The watching youngsters will also learn that banter is just not on on the field of play. Naveen, who has hardly played a handful of games was definitely out of his scope. He has a longway to go and has a lot of things to improve and learn. Abusing the opponent is certainly not among the things he needs to learn.
Wrapping up Lucknow Supergiants IPL 2023 review
Lucknow did well to reach a second straight playoffs but was unable to proceed beyond that. I do not think that Rahul’s absence in anyway affected their batting. He hardly inspired any confidence with his slow approach. Lucknow could have utilised Rahul’s absence better and must have opened with Quinton for a quick and bright start.
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